Five Minute Lamp Makeover

I love how using a little bit of paint and ingenuity can transform an item for your home into something that works perfectly for your decor. When Lover and I got married, and set up our first little apartment, I bought this diminutive candle lamp at the Christmas Tree Shop. I liked its small scale and cute little handle. It worked great in the apartment, but once we moved into the castle I couldn't find anywhere to work it in. So I tossed it into the Goodwill pile.

This is one of the times when procrastination was actually a good thing. I was moving some things around in the dining room, and realized that what I really needed was a little lamp for the dresser turned buffet. I started to add it to my "to purchase" list, but then remembered this little lamp.

I have a box full of craft paints in my office, and I grabbed some blue, brown and black paint and a brush to transform this lamp. As I have said before, craft paint dries really quickly, so I was able to transform this lamp in an afternoon. I first coated the whole lamp in midnight blue, then randomly placed splashes of brown and black paint to mimic the aged look the lamp had carried before. It didn't end up looking aged, exactly, but the color does have a lot of dimension, which I liked.

Now it fits in perfectly with the color scheme I chose for the dining room, and I didn't have to spend a dime. This makes me very happy. :-) (Which means I'll have more money in my stash for the next project I decide to work on)

Linked to

Metamorphosis Monday @ Between Naps on The Porch

Made it for Monday @ Cottage Instincts

DIY Day @ A Soft Place to Land

Five Minute Lamp Makeover

I love how using a little bit of paint and ingenuity can transform an item for your home into something that works perfectly for your decor. When Lover and I got married, and set up our first little apartment, I bought this diminutive candle lamp at the Christmas Tree Shop. I liked its small scale and cute little handle. It worked great in the apartment, but once we moved into the castle I couldn't find anywhere to work it in. So I tossed it into the Goodwill pile.

This is one of the times when procrastination was actually a good thing. I was moving some things around in the dining room, and realized that what I really needed was a little lamp for the dresser turned buffet. I started to add it to my "to purchase" list, but then remembered this little lamp.

I have a box full of craft paints in my office, and I grabbed some blue, brown and black paint and a brush to transform this lamp. As I have said before, craft paint dries really quickly, so I was able to transform this lamp in an afternoon. I first coated the whole lamp in midnight blue, then randomly placed splashes of brown and black paint to mimic the aged look the lamp had carried before. It didn't end up looking aged, exactly, but the color does have a lot of dimension, which I liked.

Now it fits in perfectly with the color scheme I chose for the dining room, and I didn't have to spend a dime. This makes me very happy. :-) (Which means I'll have more money in my stash for the next project I decide to work on)

Linked to

Metamorphosis Monday @ Between Naps on The Porch

Made it for Monday @ Cottage Instincts

DIY Day @ A Soft Place to Land

Frugal Fridays @ LifeasMOM

Trash to Treasure

Here's a quick little makeover that I am very excited about. For the past three years we've had a little plastic trashcan that fulfills its purpose wonderfully, but adds nothing aesthetically to the kitchen. I've occasionally contemplated purchasing a nicer, metal trashcan, especially when we were dog-sitting and that blasted dog got into the garbage at every opportunity.

But, I was completely unwilling to pay the ridiculous prices for said metal trashcan that I saw in stores. $30, $50, or even $100 for a can that holds all the smelly nasty stuff that I don't want anymore? No, I am not that fond of my garbage. Plus, there always seemed to be some other financial priority that was higher up than a new trashcan.

On top of all of that, there was the issue of sentimentality. See, Lover and I bought this little plastic trashcan the week we moved into our new apartment, right after we got married. Ah yes, that was a fun trip to Walmart, stocking up on mops, brooms, trashcans, toilet brushes, and all of the other things that make a house a home. You remember that time, don'tcha? That time when your lack of physical possessions makes you deliriously excited about the hand-me-down couch and the beat up end tables? When a Walmart run for household necessities is just so exciting? See, I think it is your very lack of physical possessions that reminds you why the two of you got married, because you simply chose to be together. You are together because you love each other, not because you have the most posh and polished trashcan. This is also why I like camping. You are removed from your "stuff" so you focus on "us." But I digress... :-)

In our little apartment the trashcan went under the sink. No mess, no dog problems, etc. Now, in Wendhurst Castle, the can doesn't fit under the sink, and it's, well, unattractive. And so, good old Goodwill saved me again, by providing me with a hide-and-hold silver trashcan from Target for a mere $9.99 Now we have no mess, no problems, and a pretty trashcan.

Oh, and the old plastic one? That went in the basement kitchen. We don't throw away sentimental things in this house, no sir!

Linked to Metamorphosis Monday, check out the other transformations here.

Trash to Treasure

Here's a quick little makeover that I am very excited about. For the past three years we've had a little plastic trashcan that fulfills its purpose wonderfully, but adds nothing aesthetically to the kitchen. I've occasionally contemplated purchasing a nicer, metal trashcan, especially when we were dog-sitting and that blasted dog got into the garbage at every opportunity.

But, I was completely unwilling to pay the ridiculous prices for said metal trashcan that I saw in stores. $30, $50, or even $100 for a can that holds all the smelly nasty stuff that I don't want anymore? No, I am not that fond of my garbage. Plus, there always seemed to be some other financial priority that was higher up than a new trashcan.

On top of all of that, there was the issue of sentimentality. See, Lover and I bought this little plastic trashcan the week we moved into our new apartment, right after we got married. Ah yes, that was a fun trip to Walmart, stocking up on mops, brooms, trashcans, toilet brushes, and all of the other things that make a house a home. You remember that time, don'tcha? That time when your lack of physical possessions makes you deliriously excited about the hand-me-down couch and the beat up end tables? When a Walmart run for household necessities is just so exciting? See, I think it is your very lack of physical possessions that reminds you why the two of you got married, because you simply chose to be together. You are together because you love each other, not because you have the most posh and polished trashcan. This is also why I like camping. You are removed from your "stuff" so you focus on "us." But I digress... :-)

In our little apartment the trashcan went under the sink. No mess, no dog problems, etc. Now, in Wendhurst Castle, the can doesn't fit under the sink, and it's, well, unattractive. And so, good old Goodwill saved me again, by providing me with a hide-and-hold silver trashcan from Target for a mere $9.99 Now we have no mess, no problems, and a pretty trashcan.

Oh, and the old plastic one? That went in the basement kitchen. We don't throw away sentimental things in this house, no sir!

Linked to Metamorphosis Monday, check out the other transformations here.